Oregon Legislators were due for a special session before the novel coronavirus pandemic hit our doorstep to address unfinished business from the 2020 Short Session. Little was accomplished in the short session due to partisan walkouts, and critical budgets remain unpassed. Now that legislators and other public officials are working on economic relief from the COVID-19 pandemic, pressure to call a special session continues to rise.

This begs the question, when will the Governor call a special session, and what legislation will be considered? Will any of the 250+ unpassed bills from last session make a comeback, or will we be focusing solely on the crisis at hand?

We know the Legislature created a Joint Committee on Coronavirus Response, which includes a roster of 16 legislators called upon to assemble a stimulus package for the State of Oregon. This committee held four separate meetings in which legislators heard from industry leaders, agency directors, and experts. Members of the public were encouraged to submit written testimony for legislators to consider.

Now that our legislators have all the information and recommendations they need, it’s time to get down to crafting legislation in the form of a stimulus package. Our sources have shared that the Legislature is working around the clock to find solutions to support Oregonians through this time. It is our understanding that despite the differences our legislators have had in the past, they are working to create a bipartisan bill that will garner support from all legislators even before a special session is called. We are hopeful the Legislature can come to an agreement in the next week or two and call for a single-day session before mid-April.

Do we think that Leadership will allow legislation other than the coronavirus stimulus package? Maybe. But only if that legislation is fully bipartisan and will not cause tension between the parties.

Last week, the federal government passed a stimulus package aptly named the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. This policy provides resources for individuals, small businesses, health care providers, hospital systems, corporations, and many more.

We’ve all heard about the federal legislation that will supposedly provide cash payments to Americans, but what does it really do? We went through the bill to see how it will affect people in our state, and in particular, the health care delivery system.

First, the truth about the cash payments to Americans: will every American receive $1,200 being reported in the news? The answer is yes, most adult Americans will have access to this cash payment, though some groups have been left out. According to the exact verbiage, individuals with a social security number earning up to $75,000 (based on 2019 income) will receive rebates of $1,200 per individual and $500 per child under 17. The payments scale down for those earning up to $99,000, and those earning above $99,000 will not be eligible for the rebate. You must have filed your taxes this year or last year to be eligible, and these rebates will only be garnished if back child support is owed.

The CARES Act also bolsters unemployment compensation by adding $600 to every unemployment compensation check, so no one will receive less than $600 per week through July 31, 2020. Medicaid benefits have also been expanded to include those that have been laid off or furloughed without pay due to COVID-19. Those who are self-employed, gig workers, independent contractors, or those with irregular work history are not usually covered, but under the CARES Act, they will be.

Businesses large and small shouldn’t fret! Rolled into the Act is relief in the form of tax credits, loans and loan relief, grants, and other emergency economic programs.

Though the CARES act is mainly an economic stimulus package, it does include rule and regulation changes for health care entities, as well as specific resources for providers, hospitals, and clinics. For example, many hospitals and clinics have significant concerns about cash flow due to the mass cancellations of elective services. The CARES Act creates the opportunity for hospitals to receive accelerated payments, in which qualified facilities can request a lump sum or periodic payments that could reflect up to six months of Medicare services. This direct injection of capital to our health care system is much needed, as hospitals stock up on supplies and continue to pay their nurses, doctors, CNAs, and many others.

This act also increases Medicare reimbursement COVID-19 patient care by 20 percent. This add-on payment recognizes increased costs incurred by providers and will be applied through the duration of the pandemic. Even providers and clinics that do not care for COVID-19 payments will see a two percent increase in Medicare reimbursement through December 31, 2020.

These increases in reimbursement and loan opportunities will help keep providers focused on caring for their patients. Find a more comprehensive list on how this legislation may affect you here.

While all of our member CCOs are doing amazing things in their communities, this week, we decided to highlight the work that AllCare Health has been putting in to ensure that the children in their service area do not go hungry, despite the closure of schools.

Most children attending school in the Three Rivers School District are on a meal assistance program (MAP), meaning that they receive free or reduced cost lunches while at school. While schools are closed due to the pandemic, the children on MAP would not have access to meals normally provided to them on a daily basis. For children living in poverty, their main nutrition comes from the meals they receive at school.

Because AllCare Health is so ingrained in their community, they knew how many children rely on this food resource, and immediately took action to fill that gap by partnering with the Oregon Food Bank and the Three Rivers School District.

At the end of the day, AllCare Health and partners were able to donate, package, and deliver 180 boxes of food that all clocked in at about 9 pounds of weight. Why 9 pounds you ask? Because the staff at AllCare health wanted to give as much food as possible, but also wanted children to be able to carry their food boxes home if they had to walk to pick it up. Not only did these amazing partners consider the weight of their food package, they also made decisions about what to include in it, based on what would be easy enough (and yummy enough!) for children to cook on their own, as many parents may still have work obligations during the day.

A lot of hard work and brainstorming went into ensuring that these meals were given out in a timely fashion. In fact, several AllCare staff members personally hand-packaged and delivered these boxes of food to different schools throughout the district, all because they wanted to give back to their community. Sam Engel of AllCare Health said, “We wanted to make sure that our families, our neighbors were getting what they needed during this time.”

Originally, this relief was only planned for the two weeks Oregon schools were supposed to be closed. With the extension of school closures to April 28, AllCare intends to continue this program for the next four weeks in conjunction with its partners. Though the current pilot project is in coordination with the Three Rivers School District, AllCare Health is working with other school districts to expand this program to other areas.

In an official statement, AllCare Health said “The AllCare Care Coordination department is acutely aware that food insecurity is the number one social determinant of health challenge in our community.” AllCare Health is so committed to ensuring that Oregonians have access to food, they are coordinating several other food-resource services specifically for the COVID-19 pandemic. Another initiative AllCare Health is undertaking is the utilization of traditional health care workers to deliver groceries to the curbs of their most vulnerable members.

Thank you, AllCare Health, for your dedication, expertise, and genuine concern for your community!

Yesterday morning, Governor Kate Brown issued an executive order broadening the types of businesses required to close their doors during the COVID-19 pandemic and creates a penalty for those that seek to break the order.

Though it may seem similar to the “shelter-in-place” orders that states around the nation are utilizing, our executive order differs in one major way. During a shelter-in-place order, the government creates a list of “essential businesses/services” that can stay open, because they provide health-related services, give residents access to food, like grocery stores, or are otherwise considered essential because our society could not function if they fully closed. In our state, the Governor simply expanded her previous executive order, by including more businesses to the list that must close. This will allow our state needed flexibility during this uncertain time.

The Governor’s office and Democratic legislators are sharing images like the one here, which are very clear about what residents can and cannot do under this executive order, as well as what businesses are to be closed temporarily.

Residents should and can: stay home as much as possible, stay at least 6 feet away from others when you go out, go out for essentials like groceries and medical care, exercise outside like hiking and biking as long as you can maintain your 6 foot distance from others, and drop food off to neighbors who can’t go out.

Residents should not: gather in groups, get together with friends, have play dates for kids, or make unnecessary trips.

These are the businesses that are still operating: grocery stores, banks, pharmacies, bars and restaurants for takeout and delivery only, some other stores (as long as you’re 6 feet away from other people!), and gas stations.

These are the businesses that have been asked to temporarily close: malls and retail complexes, fitness, yoga and dance centers, barbershops, hair and nail salons, spas, cosmetic stores, tattoo parlors, theaters, amusement parks, arcades, bowling alleys, skating rinks, museums, concerts, sporting events, festivals, campgrounds, pools, skate parks, playgrounds.

The executive order will be enforced on a complaint-based system, meaning that Oregonians not following the order will be ticketed after a complaint has been received, and an investigation completed.

Experts believe that the critical timeframe to stop the exponential growth of cases in our state begins this week, on March 24, 2020. Let’s be sure we’re fulfilling our social responsibility by working from home as we can, and only leaving our house on necessary errands.

COHO member Umpqua Health Alliance suggested some out-of-the-box tips for staying healthy, both mentally and physically, during the coronavirus pandemic.

By following Governor Kate Brown’s order that all Oregonians practice social distancing and stay home as much as possible, we can help make sure that our vulnerable population is less at risk of contracting the virus, as well as “flatten the curve” of transmission to ensure health care professionals are able to take care of those who are sick. However, it can be difficult to stay inside for extended periods of time without getting restless.

Below are some tips from Umpqua Health Alliance on staying healthy and happy while staying home:

Wash your reusable grocery bags – Many Oregonians use reusable grocery bags rather than disposable ones. To avoid potentially carrying COVID-19 into your home after grocery shopping, thoroughly clean your grocery bags and wipe down your groceries as soon as you get home.

Blanch and freeze your veggies – As you may have experienced, grocery stores are often very crowded and can quickly run out of fresh food. Avoid crowded grocery stores by making the most out of what you have in your fridge. Blanch and freeze your fresh vegetables by briefly boiling them, then cooling them in ice water. This retains their color and flavor for future healthy meals.

For the full list of tips, click here.